In unsealed deposition, Katy Perry says Dr. Luke never raped her

A sealed deposition from Katy Perry was unsealed Monday, bringing with it good news for plaintiff Dr. Luke. The pop star says he never raped her, as had been rumored.

The documents were opened at the request of lawyers pursuing Dr. Luke’s defamation case against Kesha, whom the record producer has been legally tangled with since 2014.

Dr. Luke, whose real name is Lukasz Gottwald, brought the defamation case against Kesha in October 2014, two days after she filed a case in which she accused him in an L.A. court of drugging her, raping her and more.

Years’ worth of court battles ensued as Kesha fought to get out of her contract and Dr. Luke sought to nail people for alleged defamation.

Then earlier this year, after a court decision closed the final appeal in Kesha’s New York case against her producer, the defamation case was allowed to move forward.

Perry’s February 2016 deposition, per documents obtained by Variety, included a series of “no” answers to questions about rape, roofies and a romantic relationship with Dr. Luke. When asked if Dr. Luke had ever sexually assaulted her, Perry answered, “Absolutely not.”

The rumor about rape appears to have arisen via a third party. Lady Gaga said in her deposition, which was also unsealed Monday and comes via Variety, that she heard the rumor from a music executive.

Dr. Luke’s suit alleged that in a private text message sent to Gaga, Kesha said that Dr. Luke had raped Perry.

“There is nothing worse than abuse and sexual assault. Dr. Luke supports any woman or man who seeks to address sexual abuse in the legal system. That is not what happened here,” the producer’s lawyers said in a statement to The Times on Monday.

“It is also horrendous to falsely accuse someone of a heinous act. That is what has happened here.”

The Times was not immediately able to reach a legal representative for Kesha.